Thin and flexible electronic devices are of great interest for application in wearable devices, electronic newspapers, smart identity cards and many other consumer electronics. One example of such flexible electronic devices is active matrix organic light emitting diode (AMOLED) displays. Specifically, in the AMOLED displays, thin film transistor (TFT) devices are made on flexible substrates by depositing thin films of an active semiconductor layer in conjunction with dielectric insulation layers and metallic contacts. The flexible substrates are temporarily attached to rigid carriers that provide sufficient mechanical support to the flexible substrates during the course of preparing the TFT devices and the corresponding AMOLED displays. After the TFT devices and the corresponding AMOLED displays are formed on the flexible substrates, the flexible substrates have to be detached from the rigid carriers without causing damages to the TFT devices or display elements of the AMOLED displays formed thereon.
An excimer laser has often been applied to release a flexible substrate from a rigid carrier. Specifically, the excimer laser has been used to treat an interface between the flexible substrate and the rigid carrier when the flexible substrate is formed directly on the rigid carrier, or to treat a sacrificial layer when the flexible substrate is coupled to the rigid carrier via the sacrificial layer. However, the use of the excimer laser is normally associated with a high tool cost, and does not have a high production yield to provide a satisfactory throughput of the flexible substrate and sensitive to the particles. Alternatively, some prior art manufacturing methods manage to hold a flexible substrate at its edge and mechanically peel the flexible substrate off the underlying rigid carrier, which therefore involves a significantly less tool cost than the use of the excimer laser. However, there has always been a challenge to control mechanical force applied on the edge of the flexible substrate so as to avoid damage to a substrate area close to the edge while still providing sufficiently strong mechanical force to detach the entire flexible substrate from the rigid carrier.
Therefore, it would be beneficial to have an apparatus that facilitates detachment a flexible substrate from a rigid carrier while not compromising the yield of the flexible substrate and the quality of display devices formed thereon during a display manufacturing process.